Death and Ocean, Summer and Skull
by GiroGirl723
Summary: Four people. All hopelessly in love. All unrequited. Life's hard for Nico and Giroro, both head over heels for people who will never love them back. Percico, GiroNatsu. Has NOTHING to do with my Summer and Skull fanfiction, despite the title. Rating may go up.
1. Nico Part 1

_A/N: Hi, I'm back! And still not keeping to my promise about finishing my other stories before writing new ones. Well, that's just how I roll. Deal. I'll finish them eventually._

_So this is in honor of one of my new OTPs, Percico! (My other one is Johnlock.) Percabeth fans, please don't hate me. I try to be as kind to Annabeth as humanly possible. She is not another Saburo or Raoul. Anyway, please enjoy!_

1

Nico

"Nico! Come on! We're having a sparring tournament. Wanna come?"

"Shut up, Clara," I muttered, then buried my head in my pillow, wanting the daughter of Demeter to go away. "Let me sleep."

"You know it's not healthy for you to stay inside your cabin all day, every day."

"Screw healthy."

"Your sister agrees with me."

"Well then, screw Hazel."

I could almost picture Clara's exasperated face. "Suit yourself. Gods, I have no idea why you're feeling so down. We've won the war with the giants, Gaea's defeated, and there's a treaty between the Romans and the Greeks. So why the heck are you so depressed?"

"None of your business."

I waited until I heard her footsteps leaving in the opposite direction, then rolled to face the cabin wall. Clara had no idea what was going on. Nobody but Jason did. This had nothing to do with the giants, Gaea, the Romans, or even a frigging argument with my dad, which happened often.

No, this was about Percy Jackson.

Percy was in New Rome with Annabeth- which I wasn't happy about- settling some last bits of the treaty with Reyna, while Hazel, Frank, and Jason were already over here at Camp Half-Blood acting as ambassadors. Pretty soon any demigod would be free to go between the two camps as they pleased, but for now the details were too complicated. So for the time being, aside from the seven of the prophecy, the Roman demigods stayed in New Rome and the Greek demigods stayed at Camp Half Blood. And me? Well, technically I wasn't part of Camp Half-Blood _or_ New Rome. I hadn't been for a while. But Chiron wanted me to stay put, so unfortunately, I had to.

Rotating so that I was on my back, gazing sullenly at the ceiling, I further pondered my predicament. If anyone found out… oh gods, if Poseidon found out… or _Father_. Hades finding out was the last thing I needed. I hated to keep how I felt silent, but at the same time I couldn't tell. I was too afraid of the world and myself. I was a coward, and I knew it, and I hated it-

"Nico! Come quickly! NOW!"

"What the heck is going on, Hazel?" I groaned, heaving myself up as my half-sister dashed into the Hades cabin.

"Another… demigod. She… well, you should come see," she panted.

"Gods, Hazel. Stop being so obscure. You're saying it like there's something weird about her."

She groaned. "We're all weird."

"I meant weird even for _us._"

"Just get your butt out there and see!"

The way she was saying it, I figured we had some major monsters to deal with. _Shoot_. And I had just gotten some quiet. I grabbed my Stygian iron sword and dashed out the door, making my way to Half-Blood Hill. Practically the entire camp was there, crowding at the border as sounds of monsters growling, battle cries, and- was that _gunshots?_ I didn't know anyone at Camp Half-Blood that owned a gun. Anyway, lots of noise coming from further down Half-Blood Hill. I had just reached the back of the crowd when the growling ceased and a familiar voice said, "That should take care of them. Hey, it's fine now. Let's go see camp."

Of course Percy would be the one to finish them off.

"Look, I'm fine. But Giroro's gonna be pissed when he finds out I ruined his gun. Just get me to flipping camp," a girl was saying.

I shoved my way to the front of the crowd to see Annabeth and Percy hauling a girl who looked probably a year or two older than me up the hill. She was covered in wounds and had- get this- pink hair pulled into two messy pigtails. But that wasn't what really caught my attention. When she looked up, several of the campers stepped back nervously. Because not only was there a mangled gun in her right hand, but there was a weary fire in her eyes, one that suggested years of battle long before she was found by monsters. This girl could put some of our best half-bloods to shame.

"I'm Natsumi Hinata," the girl said. "Now where's a place I can actually take a rest? I'd been running for six days."

Once the Seven- plus me, thank the gods. I was sick of being the eighth wheel- and the strange girl were settled in the Big House, I let out a deep breath. The entire camp had wanted to meet our newest camper, but Chiron didn't want to overwhelm her. Honestly, I would be overwhelmed if I had just found out I was a half-blood and was instantly in the same room as Percy, Annabeth, Piper, Jason, Leo, Frank, _and_ Hazel, I would be pretty overwhelmed even without the rest of the camp.

"So how are you feeling?" Jason asked after the girl- Natsumi- had taken a bite of ambrosia.

"Better," she admitted.

"That's good," Hazel said.

Natsumi nodded. "Mama and Fuyuki are probably worried to death about me."

"Your mother and brother already know where you are," Chiron said from the corner of the room. Due to how many people were crowded in the small space, he was in his wheelchair form.

"Brother? Then shouldn't he be here too?" Frank asked.

"Well, half-brother, technically," Natsumi said. "I was pretty surprised when I found out Haru wasn't my real dad. Then again, he's gone a lot, so I don't know him that well."

I nodded, assuming that Haru was Natsumi's stepfather, and possibly this Fuyuki's dad as well. "Must be a shock to find out you're a demigod, huh?" I asked.

"Not really."

Everyone turned to stare at her. "What do you mean?" Piper asked hesitantly.

Natsumi looked nervous. "I've seen a lot of strange things in the past few years," she said wearily.

Most likely getting the vibe that we should change the subject, Annabeth piped up, "Hey, hey, no tension, right? But, Natsumi, I'm curious to know how you managed to live to sixteen outside of Camp Half-Blood."

"I live- well, lived- in Japan," she responded after another bite of ambrosia and a gulp of water. "Less monsters there, I guess."

"Lucky," Leo whined. "You have no idea-"

"Just because I didn't run into monsters doesn't mean I haven't had my fair share of near-death experiences," she shot back. "So please kindly shut up."

Man, this girl had an attitude.

"You haven't been claimed yet, either," Percy finally said. "Probably should happen by tonight. Until then, we can keep your stuff in the Big House." He glanced at her small backpack. "Not exactly a good idea to leave your stuff in the Hermes cabin."

She nodded. "And yet another thing to add to the madness."


	2. Giroro Part 1

_A/N: I know this is a short chapter, but hey, it's a fast update!_

2

Giroro

I groaned and turned my skimmer towards home, grief filling my heart. _Calm down, Giro-chan_, Aki would probably say to me. _She'll come back with time. She's safe, believe me._

_But why can't you tell me where she is?_ I'd scream back. _The reason I'm searching for her day and night is because you and Fuyuki won't tell me where she is?!_

_I get it, Giro-chan,_ she would reply. _I understand. You're in love. But I can't tell you, I'm sorry. It's of the utmost secrecy._

But my searches carried on.

I reached the Hinata backyard, and landed my skimmer as Dororo peeked out the glass door and came into the yard. "No luck?"

I shook my head sadly.

He came over and placed a hand on my shoulder. "She'll come home, I'm sure of it."

I hung my head. "That's what everyone says." I crept into my tent. "I'm going to bed."

From outside, I heard, "The sun just went down. You never go to bed this early."

"There's no reason to stay up when Natsumi's not there to share sweet potatoes with me."

Dororo sighed. "You need to find a way to get over this eventually." Then his footsteps gradually faded away.


	3. Natsumi Part 1

_A/N: And here you go! Another chapter. Rest assured, I am working on my other fanfictions. Just give me a bit of time._

3

Natsumi

I slammed the hilt of my new sword- celestial bronze blade, Stygian iron down the middle to reinforce it- into the chest of Amanda, a girl from the Aphrodite cabin, knocking her to the ground. Grinning, I ran past her and further through the woods as the cutthroat game of Capture the Flag continued. "Not… bad... for a… newcomer," I heard her gasp out breathlessly behind me as I charged ruthlessly ahead.

I caught sight of a spear brimming with electricity charging through the crowd, and I groaned. _Lamer_, I mentally chuckled- I had already picked up on the camp nickname for Maimer, Clarisse's weapon of choice- and continued to surge through the battling campers until I reached Clarisse, swinging my sword out to her side. She blocked it with her spear without batting an eyelash. "Really think you can beat me, Pinkie?" she taunted. "I think not."

Snarling, I swung the sword at her again, but she blocked it a second time. She jabbed Maimer at me, but I sidestepped before plunging back for another blow. We exchanged attacks like this for several minutes as the game raged around me. I wasn't getting any hits, but I was keeping the red team's best fighter distracted, and soon my teammates on the blue team were cheering me on.

Suddenly, I heard, "Annabeth's got the flag!" and put on an extra surge of energy, giving the battle my all so Clarisse wouldn't be inclined to abandon my fight and go after the daughter of Athena. Clarisse tried to shove me to the ground, but I stood strong and swung my sword again as the blonde girl race past us and over the boundary line, and I let out a whoop. Clarisse glared at me as one of my teammates pulled me over to the growing crowd to celebrate. "Don't think this is over, Pinkie," she snarled.

"I couldn't agree more," I spat back.

"Great job," I told Annabeth once I reached her. "That was amazing."

"Wouldn't have been able to get past Clarisse if you weren't there," she responded. "Thanks."

I ducked my head. "No, thank _you_."

"Double s'mores?" Lily, a daughter of Demeter, asked, walking up to Chiron, who was standing quietly at the back. "For the winning team?"

Chiron laughed. "I don't see why not."

At the campfire that night, we sang songs that sounded like Greek mythology spoofs of usual campfire tunes, snacked on s'mores, and told jokes and stories. Casting a glance around to make sure nobody was looking, I discreetly pulled a folded photograph out of the pocket of my jeans and smoothed it out before gazing down at the faces of my family and closest friends. Mama and Fuyuki had called me earlier today- despite the usual 'no cellphone' rule, I was allowed one because I lived so far away- but nobody else knew. Giroro, the stupid frog, Koyuki, Momoka, Saburo, Mois, Dororo, Tamama, even Kururu… I wished so badly that I could tell them who I was. I sighed and looked up to see Clarisse approaching me, carrying Maimer, and quickly put the picture away.

"Time for a rematch from our little battle earlier." Clarisse smirked.

"Bring it on," I said confidently, drawing my sword. She laughed and yelled, "Everyone quiet down! I'm challenging Pinkie to a battle."

Everyone grew silent before Leo Valdez said, "Come on, Clarisse. She's new. Show a little compassion, eh?"

"Shut up, Valdez," she spat. "Come on, Pinkie, have at me."

I stood up and walked towards her, before lunging. She sidestepped and thrust Maimer at me, grazing my side. I suppressed a yelp and then a laugh as I saw the astonishment in her eyes. I was much faster than most of her opponents, I was sure.

We jabbed and parried in a whirlwind frenzy until our limbs grew sore and our breaths came out in pants. Just as I thought I was going to die of exhaustion, I felt Clarisse hesitate, and I quickly knocked her spear out of her hand, pushing her onto the ground and right on her butt.

A cheer rose up from the crowd and I beamed, before noticing that just as suddenly had everyone had become excited, they had grown silent, staring at the space above my head. Instantly, I knew I had been claimed, and I looked up…

…To see a hologram of a black helm hovering over my head- the Helm of Darkness.

Everyone knelt, and I could vaguely hear Chiron say, "Hail, Natsumi Hinata, daughter of Hades, Lord of the Dead."


	4. Nico Part 2

4

Nico

I groaned and flopped onto my bed. "Guys, get in bed. Lights-out in ten minutes."

Hazel sighed. "I hate being ordered around by my younger brother."

"First of all, don't forget I rescued you from the Underworld. Second, we're both fifteen," I responded, exasperated.

"Then Natsumi could still attest to being older. Besides, I was born in 1928- more than ten years before you. So buck up."

"Why do you always have to one-up me?!"

Natsumi, who had been silent up until now (most likely due to shock) said, "Never thought I would hear my siblings arguing about when in the early 1900s they were born."

Hazel's eyes softened. "You'll get used to this, don't worry," she said, putting a reassuring hand on our sister's shoulder. "It just takes a while."

Natsumi rolled her eyes. "Sure." She flopped back down on her bed and proceeded to pull out a piece of paper and unfolded it, and I realized it was not paper, but a photograph. The originally glossy sheet had been worn down and softened, and I knew she had probably looked at it thousands of times.

"Your family?" Hazel asked.

"Family and some friends as well," she responded, sighing.

"Can I see it?" Hazel continued.

Natsumi tensed. "It's a… delicate subject-"

"Oh, okay. I understand."

"-so you really need to keep quiet. Chiron's the only person who knows about this."

"Knows about _what_?" I asked.

Natsumi sucked in a breath and beckoned us over to her bed. Hazel sat on her left, while I got situated on her right. We both peered over her shoulder and down at the picture.

And stared.

"Who are those guys in the front?" Hazel finally asked. "Because they aren't human, I can tell that. Pets?"

Natsumi sighed. "Not pets." Then she said, "I'll start with the humans and work my way to them.

"This is Saburo-senpai," she started, pointing at a silver-haired teen in the top left. "Next to him is me, obviously, and the girl holding my arm is my best friend Koyuki-chan." Here she gestured to a girl with dark green hair pulled into a ponytail with a red ribbon. "Next to her is my mom, Aki." Aki was a woman with dark blue hair. "And next to _her_ is my friend Momoka's butler, Paul."

"Wait, you know someone who has a _butler_?" Hazel said in astonishment.

"Ever heard of the Nishizawa Peach Group?" Natsumi asked.

I nodded. "Vaguely."

"Good. Moving on to the next row." She pointed to a boy with messy, dark-blue hair. "My half-brother Fuyuki, and next to him is Shion." Shion was a girl with extremely poofy, light blue hair. "And Momoka's the girl with the short, medium blue hair next to her."

"What's with all the weird hair colors?" Hazel asked.

"Never mind that. You seriously need to pay attention to what comes next. The 'pets' you noticed earlier aren't animals, or monsters either.

"They're aliens."

My jaw dropped. "You're kidding."

Natsumi shook her head. "I'm not."

"So… you live with them?"

Natsumi nodded. "Well, three of them. Keroro, Giroro, and Kururu."

"What's it like?" Hazel asked.

Natsumi snorted. "Weird. Extremely weird."

"I can imagine," I murmured.

"So who's who?" I asked.

"Kururu's the yellow one, Dororo's light blue, Tamama's indigo, Keroro's green, and Giroro… Giroro's red."

"You miss him, don't you?"

"Giroro?" She gave a small smile. "Yeah."

"How long?" Hazel asked.

"What?"

"How long have you lived with them?"

"Three years now," Natsumi replied. "Since I was thirteen."

Hazel and I both nodded slowly, before I sighed. "We really need to get some rest, guys."

And that settled the matter.


	5. Percy Part 1

_A/N: Yet another chapter. Bit of feels in here, but I'm sure you can handle it. Enjoy!_

5

Percy

I settled down in my bed with a sigh. This day had been hectic. Annabeth and I had been flying back from New Rome on Blackjack and had stopped for the night. We were barely speaking at the moment- we had been having more fights recently- and had just finished setting up camp in Shenandoah Park when a girl had crashed into the camp, eyes wide in fear.

_"Please," she gasped. "Please help me-"_

_ Another crash came from behind her. "There's this… thing following me. Has been for days."_

_ I sat bolt upright, Annabeth mirroring my movements. "She's a demigod," I whispered to her._

_ "I know," she replied. Turning to the girl, she said, "How long do you think we have until it reaches us?"_

"_Two minutes at the most."_

_Climbing out of her sleeping bag, Annabeth began to break down camp, and I followed suit. "What's your name?" I asked as I shoved things frantically in the backpack._

"_Natsumi Hinata. Please, what's going on?"_

"_We'll explain along the ride." I whistled, and Blackjack swooped down from the trees. Problem, boss?_

_Natsumi gaped. "That's a- a-"_

"_Pegasus," I said breathlessly. "Yeah. Get on."_

_We travelled for several days, encountering monsters all the way. Finally, exhausted, we made it to camp. During this time, Natsumi told us very little about herself. Part of me wanted to say she was just uncomfortable around us, but Annabeth thought she was hiding something. Eventually, I had to cave in and agree that she was right, as usual._

Rolling onto my stomach, I resigned that I wasn't going to get sleep anytime soon, and stood up. Maybe a walk by the lake would do me good. Slipping out of bed, I reveled in the fact that the harpies were no longer enforcing curfew, at least for the time being- that was the counselors' job. I stepped out into the crisp night air- fall was just around the corner- and made my way down to the lake, letting out a sigh as I slipped my feet into the water. Water helped. Water calmed me.

"Percy."

I jolted and turned around to see Annabeth standing behind me. "Oh, hey," I said.

"Hey," she replied softly, her face scrunching up the tiniest bit.

"Something wrong?" I asked.

She hesitated, before saying, "Actually… yeah."

"What?"

Annabeth took a deep breath. "Us."

Puzzled, I queried, "What about us?"

"Percy… we've been fighting. A lot, and about the pettiest things. I think… I think this isn't working out."

I stared for a moment. Then I said, quietly, "I don't understand."

She sighed. "You never do. We're polar opposites, Percy. We always will be. And I think… I think this relationship isn't going to work out."

No. No, she can't be implying… "You're breaking up with me?" I whispered.

She gave a sad smile. "I like you, Percy, really I do. You'll always be my sweet, funny Seaweed Brain. But… but if we don't do this I'm afraid it'll just end in heartbreak. It's better this way. Less blaming, less emotional. This way, we can still at least be friends." She paused. "Can't we?"

I took a deep breath and gave a shaky nod. "I guess so."

Annabeth just stood there awkwardly for a second before taking a deep breath. "Thank you, Seaweed Brain. I really don't want to do this, but… it's better this way." And with that, she turned and disappeared into the night.

I let a single tear trickle down my cheek and then slipped into the water. A bit of a swim would do me good.

The next day I went to breakfast bleary-eyed and withdrawn. Everyone else was already eating, and when I walked in I wasn't paid any attention, thank the gods. That is, I thought nobody noticed me- but I was doomed to be wrong.

"Something up?" I heard a voice ask, and I groaned. Natsumi's keen eyes had noticed me.

"Yeah, fine," I lied, coming over to the Hades table. "What makes you think I'm not?"

She rolled her eyes. "Please."

I sighed, and then let out a long breath. "Fine. I, um… Annabeth broke up with me," I finally said, soft enough so that only Natsumi and her siblings could hear me.

Nico looked up sharply, and surprise flashed through his eyes. Hazel looked skeptical. Only Natsumi kept her cool- possibly because she didn't know all Annabeth and I had been through.

"Why?" Hazel asked eventually.

"We've been fighting. She wanted to end it before we had one big, disastrous blowout."

Natsumi nodded slowly, looking deep in thought. "Not trying to be insensitive here… but that's actually pretty smart. This way you can still be friends."

"That's what Annabeth said," I mumbled.

Hazel and Natsumi, both seemingly aware that I needed some distance, went back to eating, but Nico continued to stare at me. Finally, I yelled, "Do you really have to do that!? It's bad enough that Annabeth called it off, do you really have to be so disbelieving?!"

Nico jumped, startled, before quickly looking down and hanging his head. At the same time, everyone else's heads shot up. _Great,_ I thought as a hush grew around the dining pavilion. _Aaaand now the whole camp knows._

I saw Annabeth shake her head sadly as her siblings began to bombard her with questions, and chatter quickly returned and grew, and I knew we would be the topic of gossip for days, maybe even weeks, to come. I dragged myself over to the Poseidon table with a sigh, resigning myself to the confines of my mind.


	6. Giroro Part 2

6

Giroro

"I'm sick of these," I groaned as I dragged myself into the meeting room.

Keroro grinned. "Kerokerokero. Do my ears deceive me? Is Giroro Gocho actually reluctant to come to an invasion meeting?"

"Not worth the effort," I sighed dejectedly. "Nothing is anymore."

"Ohh… I see. This is about Natsumi," Kururu chuckled.

"That's none of your business," I snapped.

"Well, let's not focus on that." Keroro walked to the front of the room. "Kururu, the map please!"

Kururu pressed a button on a remote and a map of Pekopon came up. Instantly, everyone in the platoon straightened up. Kururu pressed a second button and the map zoomed in on Long Island, NY, where a flashing red dot was placed at the north part of the island.

"What's that?" Tamama asked quizzically.

"Ah, that's what we're wondering," Keroro said mischievously. "We've detected a large group of Pekoponians living in this spot, but there's no record of a settlement on Pekoponian maps."

"So?" I asked, rolling my eyes. This was definitely not worth my time. "Pekoponian maps are never accurate."

"But this is next to a large city, New York City," Keroro stated. "They shouldn't have missed anything like that."

"And we've detected an aura around the area that uncannily resembles a huge anti-barrier," Kururu added.

I stiffened, and Dororo said, "But there's no record of any alien activity there."

"Obviously. I did say group of _Pekoponians_," Kururu scoffed. "The question we should be asking is: how did they get that technology?"

Interest piqued for the first time since Natsumi disappeared, I asked, "So we're going to investigate?"

"Exactly," Keroro said. "We need to figure out the source of that power, and use it for the invasion of Pekopon!"

"Stupid," I scoffed. "Remember last time we tried to negotiate for power? We ended up having to go to the depths of the sea to drag…" I sucked in a deep breath. "…Natsumi out."

For a moment, everyone sobered, and I felt grateful to them for once in my life- and a little stunned, too. They were giving me a bit of time to grieve Natsumi. And… and I never expected that.

"Alright," I said finally. "Let's check out this little 'settlement'."

Two days later, we all had human forms- disguises so we could interrogate the Pekoponians we were investigating. I tugged at the black tank top I was wearing, irritated. "How do Pekoponians stand _wearing_ these things?" I muttered. "They're annoying."

"Get used to it," Kururu said smugly. "You're going to be wearing clothes for a while."

I sighed, but in reality was happy to have anything that would keep my mind off of Natsumi. "Let's go already."

Keroro grinned. "That's what I was going to say! Now come on, let's go!"

We all piled into the high-speed aircraft Kururu had commissioned and got ourselves settled. "So how long is this going to take?" I asked finally.

"Two hours, max," Kururu replied.


	7. Natsumi Part 2

_A/N: Here you go!_

7

Natsumi

I yawned and stretched, for a second expecting to be in a sleeping bag out in the woods. Then I looked around, and everything came back. I was finally at Camp Half-Blood.

Oh yeah, and I was also a child of Hades.

I sighed and ran a hand through my hair. Just when I thought my life couldn't get any crazier, I had to find out I was the daughter of a Greek god. The Greek god of _death_, no less. _Why is it always me?_ I wondered. _Couldn't we spread it out a bit, hmmm? Either the aliens _or _the demigod-ness? Or better yet, a fraction of what comes with either one? Just once, I'd like to have a normal life._ I pulled myself out of bed, searching around in my bag for a clean outfit. I glanced outside to see the sun was already high in the sky. _Crap_. I had overslept.

"Catch up on sleep?"

I jumped and looked around to see Nico still in his bed, arms folded behind his head, staring at the ceiling. "You're not outside?" I asked, surprised.

"Neither are you."

"But you've clearly been awake for a while."

Nico groaned and rolled to face the wall. "I don't feel like going outside."

"That's not healthy."

"I've been told."

Curious, I looked at him. "Something going on?"

"What do you mean?"

"You're upset about something, but you're trying to hide it. It's rather obvious, though."

"How…?"

"Dororo has a tendency to sulk a lot. You're doing the exact same thing."

Nico turned to glare at me. "I barely know you. Why should I-"

I held up my hands in defeat. "Okay. I get it. But… but if you need to talk, if you get comfortable… I'm here."

He huffed and rolled to face away from me again. Confused and concerned, I headed outside to get my first sparring lesson, resolving to find what was troubling Nico. He _was_ my brother, after all.


	8. Percy Part 2

8

Percy

"Percy!"

I looked up from fiddling with Riptide- capping the sword, uncapping the pen, then repeating the process- to see Natsumi darting over to the arts and crafts cabin where I was sitting.

"Need help with something?" I asked.

She grinned. "They say you're the best swordsman at both camps."

I ducked my head. "Well…"

"Come on," she said, hefting her sword. "I need a lesson."

"No you don't," I retorted. "I saw the way you fought last night. The way you defeated Clarisse- that was phenomenal."

Now it was _my_ turn to be embarrassed. "I had time to work on it."

"Six days? I'd say that's pretty impressive."

"I had way more than that," she muttered.

"Sorry, what?"

"Nothing." At my quizzical look, she said quickly, "I'll explain in good time. But right now… well. I'd prefer to keep my past to myself."

I nodded slowly, suspicious but not wanting to pry. "So how about that sparring lesson?" I asked, standing up and shifting my grip on Riptide.

She grinned. "Have at thee, coward!"

"What the heck?" I asked as I countered her first attack. Dang, this girl was good.

"Shakespeare. Surely you should know that." Natsumi pulled back and then jabbed at me- clearly offense was her strategy.

"Dyslexic, remember? Didn't Chiron tell you most demigods are?" I retorted as I lunged at her.

"Forgot about that little detail," she responded, blocking me without batting an eyelash. Okay, scratch my earlier assessment. This girl wasn't just offense. She could do it all.

We jabbed and parried, sidestepped and blocked, making our way away from the arts and crafts cabin and up Half-Blood Hill. Within a matter of minutes, my muscles began to burn and I felt like I couldn't go any longer. Natsumi seemed to be similarly affected, but we both pushed on, meeting stroke for stroke, attack for attack, blow for blow.

Suddenly, Natsumi's demeanor changed, and she grew distracted. Triumphantly, I knocked her sword out of her hand before pointing Riptide at her throat. "Good, but there's room for improvement…" I trailed off as I followed her gaze to see five figures standing at the top of Half-Blood Hill, just past the barrier.


End file.
